


That Coffee Shop Guy

by JustanInnocentWriter



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Benny Ships It, College AU, College Student Benny, College Student Castiel, College Student Dean, Destiel Fluff, I've never written fanfic before whoops, M/M, both i guess, btw Kylie flirts with Dean, coffee shop AU, or a college AU fic, there are a lot of OC's aha, they make a youtube channel too hah, this is a coffee shop AU fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-03
Updated: 2017-03-11
Packaged: 2018-09-21 20:36:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9565283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustanInnocentWriter/pseuds/JustanInnocentWriter
Summary: Dean nodded. The boy smiled at him and calculated the price. Dean couldn't stop looking at him. He was so... cute? He had... nice eyes? He didn't know how to describe the other boy. When he realized that he was staring, he quickly averted his gaze.





	1. First Day

**Author's Note:**

> pls don't judge this b/c I've never written fanfic before, suggestions are appreciated tho.
> 
> OH BTW the dorms are in a building behind the college (ik that's not typical but whatever)

It was a warm, brisk, September morning when Dean strolled into the small, local coffee shop before his first day of classes. He used to go there nearly every day before school when he was in high school, so he knew most of the employees, and he wanted to keep that tradition going now that he was in college. Luckily, it wasn’t too far from the college campus, and it wasn’t usually all that busy, maybe two or three people would be in the line by the time he got there. There were nearly never any new employees.

For some reason, though it wasn’t all that close to the dorms, Dean went out of his way to go to that particular shop. The dorms were really close to his college, though they weren’t on campus like they normally are. They were basically in a building that was built directly behind the school. Yet, the coffee shop was definitely at least two kilometers away, and he usually took a public bus to get there.

This particular time that he went to the little café, Dean noticed a new employee standing at the counter that he’d never seen before. A boy, about his age, with black scruffy hair, a broad smile, and a blue necktie. Dean decided to go order in the new guy's line, so they could get to know one another.

“May I take your order?”, the boy asked, not really looking up at Dean.

Up close, Dean had just now noticed how sparkling the new boy's eyes were and he was nearly in a trance from them. The new employee looked really nice in the apron and button up shirt that he had to wear.

“Yeah… I’ll have a caramel frappuccino with extra sugar.” , Dean requested.

“That’ll be all, yes?”, the new employee asked again and looked up at Dean, smiling.

Dean nodded. The boy smiled at him and calculated the price. Dean couldn't stop looking at him. He was so... cute? He had... nice eyes? He didn't know how to describe the other boy. When he realized that he was staring, he quickly averted his gaze. Lately, Dean didn't know what was up with himself. All of his friends from high school had long term girlfriends by now, but Dean couldn't seem to keep one for very long. He never really felt anything that made him want to stay with any girl.

“So, um, I come here often, so I thought you might want to get to know each other.”, Dean said, while pushing some change across the counter, “I’m Dean Winchester, I go to Westvale College. It’s actually my first day, today. Also, I basically always order the exact same thing.”

The boy cocked his head and looked at Dean as if he were surprised that someone was making small talk with him. He thought for a moment, perhaps considering what he should share with this random guy who started a conversation with him.

“I’m Castiel, but you can call me Cas. I… am also going to Westvale, but my classes are mostly in the evening, so I took a part-time job at this little café.”, Cas gestured around them, then smiled at him, and slid Dean’s frappuccino across to him. Dean noticed how accurate Cas’ grammar was compared to his own.

“That’s cool… I have too many classes, so I can’t really get a job at this point.”, Dean said, seeming a bit disappointed. 

Cas then looked straight into Dean's eyes and noticed they weren’t really any specific colour. His eyes were kind of a swirl of green, blue, and brown, depending on how the light hit them. 

“Wait, are you staying on the campus, then? Because I am...”, Dean wondered.

“Yeah, I am! I’ll hopefully see you sometime.”, Cas responded, cheerily.

Dean took his drink, turned, smiled, and waved a goodbye at Castiel. He walked to the bus stop and boarded as soon as it came, with his backpack slung over one shoulder. He sat next to some girl who seemed about his age, and she started to make conversation with him.

“Heyyy. What’s your name?”, she asked, flirtatiously playing with her hair.

Dean had never really felt anything when girls flirted with him, even if he wanted to. He really did. He just didn’t know why he didn’t, no matter how much he wanted to.

Maybe, we could be friends, he thought. 

“I’m Dean… You?”

“I’m Kylie. You go to Westvale?”, she smiled.

“Um… yes.”, he responded.

“You’re really cute, y’know.”, Kylie said. She winked and bit her lip. Seeing no response from Dean except a small smile (he was trying to be polite), she took it to the next level. She unbuttoned and took off her flannel and smirked, revealing a low-cut tank top.

Dean really wasn’t interested, even if Kylie was really cute, with her auburn hair and green glowing eyes. Why wasn’t he interested? 

He wanted to be. 

He tried so hard to feel something. 

Anything. 

He felt nothing. No sparks or tensions. Dean just didn’t understand why he didn’t. All of his friends from high school would've felt something.

“Mmm… Catch ya later, then.”, Kylie interrupted Dean’s thoughts and winked. She picked up her bags and walked over to another seat. 

Dean was deep in thought. He was straight. He had to be. So, why didn’t he ever feel anything when he was around girls?

The bus ride was short, only a few minutes, so suddenly, the bus light went off. It startled Dean. 

Westvale Avenue stop now, the bus driver boomed, over the announcement system.

Dean grabbed his backpack, hopped off the bus at his stop and walked into Westvale College.


	2. Study Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas and Dean meet again. Lots of blushing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *I had to delete this earlier b/c it wasn't updating properly*

It was getting hard for Dean to focus during his classes; to follow his schedule and such, and it could’ve been because he hadn’t gotten much sleep that last night. He had been really excited to go to his new school, even if he didn’t always do the best in his classes.

Though, when he went to music class, and the teacher, Mr. Greenwell was asking everyone if they played any instruments. When he got to Dean, he got extremely excited and exclaimed that he played the electric guitar.

Mr. Greenwell handed Dean an electric guitar, asked him to show the class how well he could play.

Dean sat with the guitar on his hip, plugged it into an amplifier, and started playing Eruption, by Van Halen.

Sure, he made a couple mistakes, but that was one of the hardest songs to play. Obviously, the entire class and the teacher were impressed, because they stared at him wide-eyed after he finished the song, then erupted into applause.

Mr. Greenwell said that he had astonishing abilities for someone who was only eighteen and that he would definitely be playing the electric guitar in class in the future.

 

The rest of the day wasn’t very eventful, but Dean had a few assignments to complete, so he went back to that café after classes with his laptop and started working.

Castiel wasn’t working this time, so Dean assumed he was at school. The only class they had together was visual arts, and Dean only had that class three times a week, on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Dean still couldn’t focus on his work, so as soon as he finished, he went straight to the campus on the bus. As he walked there, he didn’t see Cas, though he was hoping to.

He nearly slept in too late, so Dean woke with a start when he realized that he had an hour to get ready, go get coffee and get to school.

Dean showered and rushed downstairs to grab his backpack. He now had 45 minutes to get coffee and to get to Chemistry, and by the time he got the coffee shop, he had 30 minutes. Luckily, there was no lineup that day. Dean exhaled, and relaxed because he now knew that he had enough time.

He noticed Cas there again, which made him smile. Dean hoped that they could become friends.

“Hey, Dean!”, Cas exclaimed, with a beaming smile.

“Hi! I’ll have the same thing as yesterday, m’kay?”, Dean responded, giving Cas the amount of money required.

“So, Dean,”, the dark-haired boy started, handing Dean his drink, “I was thinking, do you want to be… friends or something? I can give you my number.”.

This made Dean quite happy, as he was fond of Castiel. Since they encountered each other the past day, he’d been thinking about Cas a lot.

“Oh, yes, of course!”, Dean replied, handing Cas his phone, “You can type it into my contacts, here, okay?”.

Castiel punched in his phone number and handed the rose gold iPhone back to Dean.

“I like the colour,”, Cas smiled softly, “it’s really nice.”.

‘Oh, thanks,”, Dean laughed at Cas’ comment, which seemed quite random.

“Put yours in here, if you’d like.”, Cas handed Dean his phone, which was black with a blue diamond case.

Dean wrote his phone number in Cas’ phone, and put “That Coffee Shop Guy ❤”, as his contact name.

Cas took his phone back, looked at the contact name, and felt a blush creep onto his cheeks when looking back up at Dean's scruffy hair. It looked although he didn’t have much time to brush it this morning.

“Alright, well I’ve gotta go, Cas.” Dean turned to walk out but realized that he really wanted to spend some time with Castiel. He confidently turned back around and asked “Are you free tonight? Maybe we can study together, or something,”.

“Oh.. um, sure!,”, Cas nodded, “My last class ends at 5:45, so I’ll text you my room number on the campus and stuff.”

“Sounds great, see you later!”, Dean smiled at the dark-haired boy, turned around, and went out the door sipping his drink.

Dean was extremely excited to have music class again that day, because they were going to get sheet music for Carry On My Wayward Son, one of his favourite songs. That put him in a good mood for the whole day and made him more confident. He answered questions correctly during classes and did quite well that way because of that confidence.

Finally, the time for music class arrived, and Mr. Greenwell was handing out the sheet music. Dean looked at his electric guitar part and grinned because he realized that it wasn’t all that difficult, and he ended up getting a solo!

“Alright, class, let’s do a full run-through, and we can see what needs the most work,”, announced Mr. Greenwell, “But, don’t worry if you screw up, we’re just testing our sight-reading.”

Mr. Greenwell’s dark, scruffy, curly hair made Dean think of Castiel, except he had much darker, tan-coloured skin compared to Cas’.

“It’s in 4/4 time, okay? One, two, three, fourー”

Everyone started playing, except Dean, whose part came in later. As soon as Mr. Greenwell gave him the cue, he started playing the chords.

At the end of the song, Mr. Greenwell started congratulating the flute players for playing a difficult part so well, and Dean couldn’t help but smile at them, he was impressed too. Then, the teacher came around to Dean and told him that his playing was astounding, which made Dean start grinning uncontrollably.

Mr. Greenwell put his hand on Dean’s shoulder. “I’m starting a college band, and we’re learning mostly upbeat songs that are quite fit for an electric guitar player. So, I was wondering if you wanted to take part in it!”, he suggested.

Dean agreed, enthusiastically.

He signed out an electric guitar, and Mr. Greenwell said he only needed to bring it back when they had class, because there were three, and there was literally one other person who played it. That person was in their last year of college, anyways.

Dean had completely forgotten, but he had a visual arts class with Castiel that afternoon. This day was going so well for him!

When it was time for his visual arts class, he glanced quickly around the class and saw Cas. Luckily, there was an empty chair next to him, so he made his way over there.

“Hey, Cas!”, Dean walked up behind his scruffy haired friend and grasped his shoulder.

“Oh, hello!”, Cas said a bit startled, and blushing.

Dean smiled and slid into the chair next to him, put his electric guitar under the chair, and rested his arm on the back of his seat. Dean loved how awkward Cas could be.

The teacher walked up to the front of the class. He was buff, had very dark skin and dark brown eyes, and his long wavy hair was pulled back in a bun.

“So, hello class. I believe that this is the first time that I’m seeing you,”, he smiled, “I’m Mr. Carter, and I’ll be your visual arts teacher for this semester. Now, whoever you’re sitting next to is going to be your partner for whenever we have a group project.”

Dean turned and grinned at Castiel, who smiled back, then reached up to run his hand through his hair.

Mr. Carter told the class to use the paint and canvases provided in front of them and to paint whatever came to mind first. A girl spoke out and asked if there were any rules, and he replied with a no because he said that art had no limits or boundaries.

Dean wasn’t necessarily all that good at art, but he still enjoyed it, so that’s why he signed up for the class. He liked painting abstract because it wasn’t as obvious if it didn’t turn out as he wanted it too, so that’s what he decided to do; just paint shapes that kind of formed the shape of something. It actually did look quite nice. But, when Dean looked over at Cas’ painting, it amazed him. It seemed as though Cas was painting himself sitting against a building in the rain. The way his strokes hit the canvas nearly entranced him. Dean noticed that Cas’ hands were really nice too. He wasn’t paying attention to anything else but the taller boy.

“Hey, pay attention to your own work, please,”, Mr. Carter whispered with a smile, he had come up behind Dean and had tapped him on the shoulder.

Dean blinked hard and jumped in his seat. He hadn’t realized that he was staring at Cas’ artwork. Cas looked up at Dean and Mr. Carter.

“Oh! Um… Sorry.”, Dean muttered, his face turning a shade of dark pink.

Castiel looked back down and tried to focus on his painting, but Dean could tell that he was hiding a smile.

“Hey,”, Dean pushed his shoulder, ”don’t make fun of me!”, he laughed.

“I wasn’t…”, Cas smirked.

The pair both looked down at their paintings quickly, as they saw Mr. Carter's sharp gaze from across the room.

“Are they dating or something?”, Mr. Carter leaned over and whispered to one of the students at the front of the class, but they only responded with a confused shrug.

Castiel continued to paint, but this time, Dean tried to focus on his own work. His eyes kept drifting over to the taller boy, but he caught himself and attempted to avert his gaze. Both Dean’s and Cas’ work ended up attracting the attention of the teacher. Mr. Carter appreciated the contrast in Dean’s painting and then went on to say how extraordinarily gifted Cas was at visual arts. Dean agreed.

Eventually, the class ended and the two left the class after packing up their things and started discussing how they were going to study that evening as they walked down the hallway.

“This was my last class for the day, but you said we could study later, yeah? Could you maybe help me out with some history stuff?”, Dean asked, slinging his electric guitar over his shoulder.

“Definitely! It’s, what, 2:45 now? I’ll be done in three hours. I’ll text you my room number right now.”, Cas responded, and took out his phone to send Dean a message, “Anyways, I have to get to my next class..”

Castiel waved goodbye and took off running to his next class.

Dean started walking to a bench outside the school. He sat and opened the text from Castiel, which read “My room number is 284. See you tonight at 6:30? Dean grinned, and started typing a response: “Sounds awesome, see you then!”.

He picked up his bag and guitar case and started walking.

As he arrived near the campus where the dorms were, Dean went to his dorm, but his roommate wasn’t there, so he decided to start his lab report for science class, which was due the next Monday. Dean usually tried to work hard for school, but he was a bit hyperactive, so he sometimes got distracted. Once he got about ⅓ done the report, it was about 5:15. Dean had about an hour before he wanted to head over to Cas’ room. So, he unzipped his case and started practicing the songs that Mr. Greenwell had given him for the band on his guitar.

Before he realized it, 45 minutes had passed and an alarm went off on Dean’s phone, saying: “Cas’ dorm: studying soon ”. He packed up his guitar, put his textbooks and his phone in his backpack, locked his door, and started walking to room 284.


	3. Happy Little Pill

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Castiel have a study "date".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the part with the questions is a little cringy so beware

When he got there, Dean could hear some light and airy music playing from the inside. He knocked on the door. It took a minute, but the music was turned off and eventually the door opened.

“O-oh, hi, Dean. You wanted to work on some history? Um, could you also help me with some art stuff?”, Cas asked, standing in the doorway.

“I really don’t think I’m much help in that area, but sure.”, Dean chuckled.

Dean couldn’t understand why, or how Castiel could need his help with art when he was already so amazing. He was probably the best artist Dean had ever seen.

Cas opened the door wider and gestured toward a desk with two chairs next to it.

“My roommate isn’t here right now, but they’ll probably be here soon. You can just ignore them, they can be kind of rude sometimes.”, Cas said, seeming a bit nervous.

The pair sat down, and Dean opened his backpack, taking out his World History textbook and placing it on the table in front of them. He opened to page 15 and asked for Cas to quiz him on the questions given on that page. Dean was still wondering what song he had heard through the door earlier.

“Okay… What is the largest religion in Africa?”, Cas read off the page.

“I think it’s… Christianity?”, Dean hesitated before answering.

“Yeah, that’s right!”, Cas exclaimed, nearly smiling. Dean guessed that the dark-haired boy didn’t smile much

“Alright, read off another question!”, Dean replied.

“Were the Greeks monotheistic?”

“Um, no, they were polytheistic.”, Dean replied, seeming a bit unsure.

“Right again!”

They went through about another fifteen questions, which Dean got right when Cas looked down to read off another question, but suddenly stopped short.

“Dean, you said you needed help with World History! You seem great at it, though.”, Cas commented, giggling and nudging closer to him on the couch.

The truth is, Dean really didn't need any help in History, he was already acing the class. He just needed an excuse to hang out with Cas, and that was the first thing he could think of.

“Err… I’m not all that good at it…”, Dean muttered, “But, anyways, I was wondering, earlier, before I came, you were playing some music. What song was it?”

Cas seemed surprised, although he didn’t expect that question.

“It was Troye Sivan… “Happy Little Pill”.

“Oh, cool! Can you put it back on?”

“Um, sure, I guess.”, he responded, with some hesitance.

Castiel stood up and walked over and turned his phone on, which was connected to some speakers and put the song back on. Dean usually didn’t like pop music all that much, he preferred classic rock, but he liked this singer. He also liked how Cas would quietly sing along because had a really nice voice. 

Cas sat back down on the couch, next to Dean. He continued to ask Dean questions from the textbook while Troye Sivan’s album played. 

About an hour later, Cas’ roommate walked in.

“Heeyyy, Cassy. Who’s your friend?”, the tall person asked, teasing him.

Castiel looked up at him.

“Alex, this is Dean. We’re studying.”, Cas said, gesturing to the textbooks, “Dean, this is Alex, they’re agender, and use they/them pronouns.”

“Nice to meetcha, man.”, Alex held their hand out, and Dean stood up and shook it.

“Can you let us study, please?”, requested Cas, politely.

“Dude, it’s literally the second day of college. Why’re you freakin’ studying…?”, asked Alex.

“B’cos we want to, okay?”, Cas shushed them.

Alex sighed, went over to their bed and directed their attention to their phone.

“Okay, Dean. You said you could help me with art, right?”, Cas asked, wanting confirmation.

Dean still didn't know how he could possibly help Cas, considering his outstanding skills already.

“Um, yeah, I guess.”, he responded, uncertain.

“Alright. I need your opinion on this.”, Cas picked up a canvas from behind his bed.

Dean's eyes widened. The painting was amazing! It was a person standing with their back him in front of a busy street, and it was so realistic that Dean could practically jump into the scene.

“No comment..?”, Cas looked disappointed and a bit concerned.

“N-no, not at all. It's… you're so talented. It's absolutely amazing…”, Dean marveled, with a goofy grin, “Words can't describe how amazing you are.”

“Dean… I… Thank you.”, Castiel pulled Dean into a tight hug.

Eventually, Dean backed off from the hug and checked his phone for the time. It was already 10:37?! He had to get some sleep. His first class started at 7:30 the next morning. Dean definitely hadn't planned to stay this long.

“Cas, I have to go get some sleep. I have a class early tomorrow morning. I'm sorry.”, Dean said, with a concerned look on his face.

“Oh, oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I didn't know.”, Cas responded, looking disappointed in himself.

Did he think it was his fault..? Dean wondered.

“No, it's fine, not your fault.”, Dean assured him, as he packed up his things.

The pair walked towards the door and Castiel opened it.

“Get a good sleep. Also, don't tune out watching my art again in art class tomorrow!”, Cas giggled.

“Jeez, Cas,”, Dean shoved him lightly as he stood in the doorway, “I won't, don't worry.”, he laughed.

Dean quickly walked off with his backpack over both shoulders, and Cas shut the door behind him and exhaled.

“You guys are going to be great friends, I think.”, Alex spoke up for the first time since they were introduced that evening.

“Yeah… I hope,”, Cas felt some heat creep to his face.

Dean got to sleep at about 10:45, and Cas slept at about the same time.


	4. Sculpting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Early mornings, and awkward art classes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, so the chapters are short. I'm dividing them in sections of 900-1500 words, but some may be longer.

The alarm on Dean's phone went off at 6:30, giving him an hour to get to school. He showered and was ready to walk to the coffee shop by 6:40.

Cas woke up quite a bit earlier, as he didn't need very much sleep in order to function properly, and he had to get to the coffee shop to work.

Dean burst into the shop with his hair still quite damp, a button on his shirt undone, with his bag and guitar in his hand, and greeted Castiel with a quick hug.

Morning, Cas! Sleep well last night?”, Dean asked, grinning.

Cas loved how Dean's hair was scruffy that day, kind of like his own.

“I did, thank you.”, he answered, “Er, what's in the black case?”, Castiel asked, pointing at Dean's electric guitar.

“Electric guitar.”

“Wait, you play?”, Cas asked while making Dean's coffee, “Huh. You never told me that.”

Dean kept forgetting that they'd only known each other for a few days now, they seemed so much closer than that. “Yep. I'll have to show you sometime. This weekend, maybe.”, Dean smiled.

“I'd enjoy that.”, Cas handed Dean his coffee, “See you in Visual Arts.”, he winked at Dean.

Deans cheeks flushed, and he waved goodbye to the scruffy-haired boy while slinging his guitar over one shoulder.

According to Dean’s schedule, he had Music, World History, Chemistry, Algebra, and Visual Arts that day.

He walked with a bounce, excitedly, through the halls to the music room, and sat in his seat next to the amp. As Dean was opening his guitar case, Mr. Greenwell came over and tapped him on the shoulder.

“For the band, I’d love for you to come here this afternoon at about 4:00. That’s when we’re gathering everyone here.”, Mr, Greenwell grinned.

Dean nodded, and Mr. Greenwell marched to the front of the room. “We’re going to do another run-through of “Carry On My Wayward Son” today, then you can work in your sections to improve it.”, Mr. Greenwell announced, nodding enthusiastically, “I’ll give you a few minutes to put your instruments together.”

Dean realized that there was no one “in his section” for him to work with on the song, so he decided to go and ask Mr. Greenwell.

“Um, Mr. Greenwell,”, he poked the teacher on the shoulder, which made him turn around, “There’s no one in my section that I can work with…”.

“Oh, sorry, Dean. You can work independently, and here’s the music that we’re going to be working on for the band.”, Mr. Greenwell urged, ruffling around in his papers for a couple seconds before handing Dean the music. Dean grinned, took the papers, and put them in his music folder.

The piece sounded really great, and Dean did exceptionally well. He then went on to practice the new pieces that he was given. One of them was “Smoke on the Water”, which he recognized, but the rest were unknown to him.

Because Cas had helped him study that previous night, Dean did very well in World History class that day. Chemistry wasn’t all that exciting, they just had to work on the lab report, and Algebra was kind of boring, or so Dean thought. Then, came Visual Arts class. Dean walked into the class with his electric guitar, skimmed the room for Cas, and slid into the chair next to him.

“Hey, buddy, how’s it going?”, Dean asked, quietly, in order to not attract any attention from Mr. Carter. Cas wasn’t doing all that great. He was really stressed because his parents had been fighting more than usual, and individually messaging him for advice. Not that he was going to share that with Dean, though. He wouldn’t understand.

“Hi. It’s going alright, I guess… Nothing particularly exciting.”, Castiel responded, shrugging.

 _Is he okay..?_ , Dean wondered, _He’s usually so… peppy_.

“Cas… Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”, Cas mumbled.

 _Well, he’s obviously not… So what do I do? I’ve… never dealt with…_ , Dean thought.

Dean suddenly hugged him tightly without thinking, and Cas returned the hug with no hesitation, resting his head on Dean’s neck. Dean thought he could feel Cas crying, though he didn’t know why.

“T-thank you, Dean… I know we’ve only known each other for a l-little while, but you’ve been so sweet and…”, Cas stammered.

The boy with the necktie pulled away, but Dean kept his hands on Cas’ shoulders. “Cas, I don’t know what’s wrong, but we’ll get through this.”, Dean assured him, squeezing his shoulder lightly.

At the front of the room, Mr. Carter was watching them.

“Are you sure that they’re not dating?”, he asked, suspiciously, to a long-haired student sitting near the front of the room.

“Um… I barely know them, but I don’t think so…”, they responded.

“They totally are, though. They have to be.”, he assured them with confidence.

The student shrugged, and Mr. Carter rolled his eyes. “Alright. Today, we’re sculpting. Use the clay in front of you to form a person.”, Mr. Carter instructed.

Dean took the plasticine and squished it between his hands to warm it up, thinking about who he would mold the person into.

Cas did the same, and also didn’t know who to base his on, so he just went with whatever felt right. The outstanding art student started sculpting a cylinder with the warm clay, which he then gave legs, arms, and a head. That was his base. He sculpted the legs and arms thicker and gave it gentle eyes. At that point, he started giving the person spiked-up hair, and a flannel. He added in the rest of the details and started the finishing touches. Mr. Carter walked past and glanced at what he was sculpting, and grinned.

Dean started to mold his person as well, without thinking, and he gave it scruffy hair, a necktie, and piercing eyes.

The two looked down at their sculptures and realized that they had molded each other in clay. Dean looked over at Cas and their faces were suddenly much darker than normal. As soon as they met eyes, they both quickly averted their gazes back to their sculptures. Dean hadn’t meant to make his work resemble his friend, it had just happened.

Mr. Carter was now even more curious about their relationship.

The class ended, and Castiel glanced over at Dean.

“Well, looks like we sculpted one another…”, Dean chuckled, messing with his hair.

“Hah, yeah.”, Cas responded, nervously.

“Did you plan to do that..?”, Dean asked, gesturing to the sculpture on Cas’ table that highly resembled him. Castiel wasn’t sure if he had done it on purpose or not, so he searched Dean’s face for a hint regarding his opinion toward it.

 _Does he think it’s strange, or is he happy with it..?_ , Cas wondered. He couldn’t tell what Dean’s reaction was, he only noticed the sparkle dancing around in his eyes, and his light grin. _What does that even mean?_ he thought to himself.

“I… I’m not sure.”, he eventually responded.

“I feel like,”, Dean paused to think, “it kind of came naturally… It’s just that we’re sitting next to each other, so we used each other as models, maybe.” Dean wasn’t exactly confident about that response, but it seemed to be logical enough. It’s not like there was anything else between them.... right?

 _Is that why? I was just sitting next to him, so I used him as a model? Could that really be all?_ , Cas thought, very unsure of that being true. He felt as if it could perhaps have been something… more. Was there anything between them? No, of course not. They were obviously just friends. Two straight friends.

“That makes sense, I guess.”, Cas replied, seeming a bit concerned. By that time, nearly half the students had left the classroom, and if Cas didn’t hurry up and leave soon, he’d be late for his next course, which was chemistry. Dean was quite fortunate, visual arts being his last course that day.

Dean started slowly packing away his things, and Cas suddenly realized that he had to leave quickly in order to make it to the next classroom on time. He rushed to put his things away and nearly tripped on a chair while running out the door. Castiel couldn’t be late, especially not today. The professor normally locked out any students that weren’t there on time, and there was a critical lecture that day. If he missed it, he could fall behind and his grade would suffer greatly.

About a minute after Cas left, Dean walked out as well. He checked his phone, and it was 3:00 p.m. He was supposed to go to the music room before 4:00, so Dean decided to work on that lab report in the library. He slid his guitar under the chair.


	5. I Saw Her (**Him) Standing There

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Music class. Kylie comes back and flirts again, they become friends. Another "study date" is set up.

As he laid out his books and his work in the library, a girl sat down next to him. Dean thought that it looked like the girl that had sat next to him on the bus a couple of days ago.

 

“Hey, you’re really cute…”, she bit her lip. “I think you’re in my visual arts course. I saw you sitting next to that guy in the blue necktie, right?”, the girl, who he assumed was Kylie, from before, asked.

 

Dean didn’t want her to flirt with him; he didn’t want to date her. He just wanted to be friends.

 

“Yeah, I’m Dean Winchester, and I sit next to Cas in that class.”, he responded cautiously, then paused, “You’re Kylie, right? We met on the bus the other day?”

 

“Yep, that’s me!”, she nodded, “Here, type your number in.”, she said as she handed Dean her phone.

 

“So, we can be friends, yeah?”, Dean wrote his number in.

 

“Mhm, I guess. For now, at least.”, Kylie laughed, and Dean assumed that she was joking.

 

Dean was relieved, he only wanted to make friends, nothing too serious. It was only his first week of college, anyways.

 

“Okay, awesome!”, he responded, and smiled, softly.

 

“I noticed your  _ Kansas _ shirt, that’s why I came over, by the way.”, Kylie informed Dean, poking at his chest. 

 

“You listen to _ Kansas _ ?!”, Dean exclaimed, and his face lit up.

 

“Yeah! They’re awesome. Now, I need to get some research done for my Art History class”, she pushed herself up on the table, “Bye, Dean!”.

 

At this point, if Kylie was flirting, Dean was oblivious to it. He was glad to have made a new friend, but he needed to work as well, so he plugged his earbuds in, started playing some instrumental music, and got down to it.

 

By the time the alarm on his phone went off (the intro to  _ Eye of the Tiger _ ), telling him to go to the music room at 3:45, Dean had finished about half of his report. He wasn’t necessarily all that great at chemistry, but he was trying really hard. His goal was at least 75% as a final grade, and he was working hard towards it.

 

He packed up his books and walked out the library doors, through the halls and to the music room. There were already about seven people there, even though Dean was about ten minutes early. He sat over near the back corner of the room and plugged his electric guitar into the amp. A tan-skinned boy sat next to Dean, and a girl with a pixie cut sat next to the other boy. They both had bass guitars and plugged them into amps.

 

The boy looked up for a moment. “‘Sup bro, I’m Jay.”, he said, nearly monotonous, and looked back down, fiddling with the tuning keys on his bass.

 

“Hello, I’m Alexis!”, the girl piped in, cheerily.

 

“Hey, my name’s Dean. How long’ve you two been playing bass?”, he asked, gleefully.

 

Dean was ecstatic to look around and see so many people who were as enthusiastic about music as he was.

 

“I’ve been playing since about grade seven.”, Alexis answered.

 

“Yeh, same.”, the boy with the dark fringe responded, quietly. He went back to his guitar and strummed a few chords.

 

“He doesn’t talk much.”, Alexis informed Dean, poking Jay, with a teasing tone to her voice. Jay grunted and swatted her hand away.

 

Dean checked to make sure his electric guitar was tuned properly and turned the amp down low so he could start practicing those songs he had been given earlier.

 

Mr. Greenwell strolled casually to the front of the classroom and clapped loudly to get everyone’s attention. By the time everyone had filed in, there were about fifty of them there. That was definitely the largest band Dean had ever seen, nevertheless participated in, which kind of put some pressure on him and made him nervous. Being the only electric guitar player made him nervous. 

 

“Alright, little musicians,”, he grinned, “we’re going to start with  _ “I Saw Her Standing There” _ . I know it’s an odd song for a band to play, but we’ll have fun with it. It’s kind of a doo-wop theme.”

 

He rose his hands, to indicate the cue for bringing up your instruments, and started counting them in. 

 

The first run-through was… iffy. It was satisfactory, but some parts of it, Dean had trouble with. 

 

By the time he knew it, the practice was already over. Dean packed up his electric guitar and turned on his phone while walking out of the room. It was 4:53. He sat on a bench outside the college and noticed that he had a message from Kylie: _ Can u come to my dorm (#209) at like 6:30??? Just wanna hang out or sumthin. _

Dean was actually planning to spend the evening with Cas, so he texted the taller boy:  _ Hey Cas, can I come over at 6:30? Will u be done your courses? _

He turned off his phone and was about to put it in his pocket. Then he remembered about Kylie. _ oh btw can I bring my friend?  _ He’d text Kylie back if Cas responded.

 

Cas was delighted to receive a text from Dean, but he only had about a minute to type a response as he had to get to his next class. He couldn’t help but have a twinge of jealousy from Dean having a new friend, but he ignored it. 

 

He walked over to a tree on campus because it had been getting really warm on that bench. As he sat down in the shade, his ringtone went off. Cas had sent him a text:  _ Yes, my courses are done then. I’m just between courses right now, and sure, bring your friend. See you then! _

 

Now, Dean had to tell Kylie to come:  _ Kylie, can you come to my friend's dorm, number 284, at 6:30? He’s expecting both of us. _ , he sent.

  
Kylie responded nearly automatically, confirming that she’d be there.


	6. Anything, as Long as it's With You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Castiel wake up in an... unexpected fashion. Discussions of a future YouTube channel follow.

At 6:20, he packed up his books, took his backpack, and walked to Cas’ dorm. He saw Kylie in the hall, and they walked the rest of the way together.

 

Dean knocked on the door and was greeted by Cas.

 

“Hey, Cas!”, he drew Cas into an awkward hug, “This is Kylie, we met at the library today.”

 

“Hi, nice to meet you, Cas!”, Kylie waved at him.

 

“Alex isn’t here right now, and they have courses until late tonight, so we won’t be bothered by them.”, Castiel responded.

 

“Oh, good,” Dean smirked, “Could you maybe put on that music from yesterday?”,

 

“Gladly, can I just put my playlist on shuffle?”, asked Cas.

 

“Sure!”, Dean replied, and took out some textbooks.

 

Cas walked over and started fiddling with his phone.

 

“So, Dean, you like history? I really need some help in that.”, Kylie complained, with a smirk.

 

“Oh my god, yes. It’s so interesting!”, Dean exclaimed with a grin.

 

The dark-haired boy smirked at Dean.  _He's so adorable... Wait, no. No, no, no. I'm just his friend..._ , Cas thought to himself and frowned.

 

“You can help me then?”, she smirked and put her hand on Dean’s waist.

 

Wasn’t Dean supposed to feel something? Some sort of sensation? He tried to, but similar to earlier, he couldn’t. Kylie moved closer to him, and he still felt nothing.

 

Cas rolled his eyes, a bit annoyed, on the other side of the room. He had just wanted to spend some time with Dean, but this girl intruded. She seemed sweet, he couldn’t help but admit, but he didn’t like that she was flirting with Dean. He quickly realized how rude he was being, and pushed those feelings away. Castiel put on a clean version of _All Time Low_ , by Jon Bellion, then pushed the shuffle button.

 

Cas sat with the other two near a desk, next to Dean.

 

“Hey, Cas, you should show us some of your sketchbooks or something. I love your art, and I’d love to see more of it”, Dean urged, nudging him.

 

“Oh, um, alright…”, Cas mumbled, and stood up to get one of his older sketchbooks from his bedside table. Dean stared at him the whole time until Kylie noticed and waved her hand in front of his face, giggling.

 

The truth was, Cas took a sketchbook from last year because, in his new one, he’d been drawing people. More specifically, he’d been drawing Dean. Cas didn’t want Dean to see them because he didn’t know how he’d react.

 

Cas took a seat and opened up the book, showing Kylie and Dean his drawings. Dean thought all of them were amazing masterpieces, even if they were just sketches. He was smiling lightly and complimenting the dark-haired boy the entire time.

 

As soon as they finished going through the sketchbook, Kylie politely said that she had to go get some sleep, but she had a great time that evening. She cupped her hand on Dean’s cheek as she said goodbye, and Cas sighed quietly and looked away. There was a short moment of silence.

 

“Cas, can we just… talk? I’d love to get to know you better.”, Dean suggested.

 

“Y-yeah. Sure. You start, tell me about your family.”

 

Dean didn’t usually tell people much about his family, but he had some sort of connection with this college artist that made him want to tell him everything; to get it all off his chest.

 

He couldn’t help but feel slightly attracted to Castiel, but whenever he realized it, he pushed the feelings away. He couldn’t be into guys. His dad would kill him. Dean’s dad followed the… let’s say “traditional” ways. _No, I’m into girls. I’m straight_ , he assured himself. The pair moved onto Cas' bed to talk.

 

That evening, they learned a lot about each other. Cas learned that Dean had a younger brother, named Sam, his mother passed away when he was little, and that when they were younger, his dad moved around a lot because of work. His dad, John, was also a jerk toward him, always criticizing everything he and Sam did.

 

Cas told Dean a lot about how he started drawing because his childhood was really difficult. His father was an alcoholic, and his mother was a heavy smoker. They fought a lot and were really hard on him. So, art was his only escape.

 

Castiel proceeded to sketch a dark-skinned girl, and Dean watched actively and wide-eyed, fascinated at how Cas could create such a thing with his hands.

 

At about 10:30, the pair were getting really tired and nearly falling asleep. Their speech was slowing, and Cas kept yawning and blinking fiercely to keep himself awake. Dean was in the middle of a sentence when he fell asleep on the couch, and Cas fell asleep next to him. Dean had his arm over Cas’ shoulder.

 

Castiel and Dean woke with a start at 5:00 a.m. from Cas’ phone alarm which was still plugged into the speakers. Alex had arrived sometime during the night when the two boys were asleep. Alex was snoring loudly in their bed on the other side of the room, and they managed to sleep through the alarm. Though, they somehow always woke up on time for their courses.

 

Dean groaned, and looked over to see a half asleep Castiel practically on top of him, and rubbing his eyes. Dean glanced at him and blushed. _He looks so precious._ Then he realized: _Oh my god, no, that’s gay. Ugh, I need to stop. Cas is obviously just a friend._

 

Cas moved into a sitting position with his legs still on top of Dean's.

 

“G’morning,”, Dean yawned, “You sleep okay? I hadn’t been planning to, um, stay the night.”, he bit his lip nervously, his voice a bit hoarse.

 

“Mhm... I’ve got to go to work soon…”, the messy-haired boy stood up shakily, still half-asleep, and walked over to a laundry pile. Cas picked up some clothes and went to shower. He came out, still in the process of putting his shirt on.

 

“Cas, I’ve got to go get some clothes and shower, butー”, Dean started but was interrupted by the other boy.

 

“Hey, you can wear some of my clothes. We’re around the same size, right? My clothes might be a bit big for you, though…”, Cas smirked and looked the shorter boy up and down. That surprised Dean, he definitely hadn’t been expecting Cas to suggest that.

 

“You’re sure..?”, he looked for some sort of confirmation.

 

“Yes, it’s absolutely fine.”, Cas assured him.

 

Dean wondered how someone could be so awake so early in the morning. Especially without having any coffee! He guessed that Cas was definitely a morning person.

 

“Here.”, Cas handed him a flannel, a pair of jeans, and a belt from his dresser. “I've never actually worn this flannel, but that's pretty much all you wear, so...", he said with a grin. "If you go quickly, I can go with you to the shop, and then you can get to your first course on time.”

 

Dean had to make sure that he had all the things he needed for that day of college, and since he didn’t have band or music class, he didn’t need his electric guitar. He had brought all of his textbooks and notes with him, in case Castiel had wanted to study, but obviously, that hadn't happened.

 

He gladly took the clothes (and appreciated the flannel), thanked Cas, and quickly showered. Dean ran back to his dorm to brush his teeth, and then the two went off.

 

As they boarded the bus, Dean realized that Cas’ clothes were, in fact, much too big for him, but at least he had a belt. Well, there was nothing he could do about it at that point, anyways. 

 

Cas looked over at Dean, and even though his clothes were baggy on him, he still managed to look cute.

 

“We don’t have Visual Arts today…”, Dean remarked, partially disappointed, as they were sitting on the bus.

 

“Mm. Yeah.”, Cas replied, seeming slightly disappointed as well.

 

“Hey, I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and I was wondering, if, um, you could help me set up a YouTube channel. It could be a collaboration sort of thing. You could… make the cover art and stuff…”, Dean requested, nervously. He had always really wanted to be able to post his music online, but could never set things up properly.

 

Cas really wanted to help Dean.

 

“Oh, yes, of course! I’d be glad to.”, Cas smirked, and put his hand gently on Dean’s shoulder. “I’ve been practicing piano, in fact. I have a keyboard tucked away in the corner of my dorm."

 

“AWESOME! I’d love for you to play!”, Dean exclaimed and made dramatic hand gestures. He had another request, but he didn’t know if the other boy would be comfortable with it. Dean had heard Cas singing one evening, and he had a pretty nice voice. Not outstanding, but he could hit pitches and the like. Cas’ voice was also lower than his, so they could harmonize nicely. “I have… one other thing. Could you sing with me?”, Dean asked softly, with a nervous smile. He felt heat rise to his cheeks.

 

“M-me? Sing? Um…”, Cas stammered. The scruffy haired boy definitely wanted to, but he didn’t know if he even could.

 

“Yes! Pleeeease?”, Dean whined, smiling, and shook Cas’ shoulder lightly.

 

“Fine… I guess…”, Cas was still really nervous.

 

“Yay!”, Dean exclaimed, and a beaming smile rose to his face, which made Cas blush. Cas blushing made Dean blush, and man, it was a blush-a-palooza.

 

The pair discussed technical details of the upcoming channel, like what kind of art Dean wanted for it, and what songs they would make covers of. They got off the bus near the coffee shop and walked in. Dean checked his phone, and it was only 5:45. His first course started at 7:15 that morning, so what was he going to do for an hour and a half?

 

Cas slipped an apron over his head and started making Dean his drink.

 

“Y’know, Cas, if singing in front of a camera makes you uncomfortable… You don’t have to. I just wanted to do this together. Your art could get some publicity, too.”, Dean announced. He really didn’t want to make his friend uneasy, but he wanted to do something with him.

 

“I’m absolutely fine with it, don’t worry.”, Cas handed Dean a drink. “This isn’t what you usually order, but I promise, it’s great.” Dean took the drink and hesitated. He took a sip, and it was amazing. It was by far the best coffee he’d ever tasted!

 

“Whooaaa, Cas, this is awesome!”, Dean exclaimed, wide-eyed.

 

“I’m glad you like it.”, Cas grinned and started wiping down the counters.

 

Dean sat down at a table and took out his laptop, so he could work on his lab report for a few minutes before he had to get on the next bus to Westvale. It was 6:00 a.m., and he wanted to get on the 6:47 bus.

  
At 6:42, Dean waved goodbye to Cas and boarded the bus, which fortunately stopped right outside of the shop. Dean had Biochemistry, Algebra, Creative Writing, and World History, that day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone reading this was wondering, here are my social media accounts:
> 
> Instagram:  
> -@bisexual.geek  
> -@justanerdthatdraws
> 
> Tumblr:  
> -@innocentlilnerd
> 
> And if anyone wants to contact me (collab, or something), here's my e-mail:
> 
> chloedthegeek@gmail.com


	7. Doubt - I'm no Good Without You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The pair goes out for dinner to discuss. A little bit of angst from Dean near the end.

Dean particularly enjoyed the creative writing course that day. Yet, courses were getting a lot harder. Dean was assigned two reports and a creative writing story for the upcoming week. He had to finish that lab report, but fortunately, he was nearly finished.

 

As he got back to his dorm, he checked his phone for any texts from his artistic little friend. Hah, it was funny when Dean called Cas "little", considering he was taller than Dean. It was just that he was so shy. When Dean got a notification saying that Castiel had texted him, his face lit up.

 

_ I hope that this isn’t weird, but would you like to go out for dinner? We can further discuss the channel. _

 

While Dean read the text, heat flushed his face and neck. Cas was so grammatical, which the other boy loved, but Dean honestly had horrible grammar. He didn’t care, though.

 

_ Yeah, sure. Meet me at my room whenever u want to it's #296 _ , he replied.

 

Dean was delighted to be able to spend some time with his friend, and he went to change so that he could return Cas’ clothes when he came. Dean put on a baby blue button-up shirt and light grey skinny jeans. He put studs in his ears, something that he hadn’t done in a long while. The boy took some time to fix up his hair with some gel, as he hadn’t had time to that morning.

 

He decided to get a start on his creative writing story, and he wrote about a teenage boy falling in love with his best friend, but he was oblivious that it was actually happening. Little did Dean know, that was actually happening to him.

 

Before Cas arrived, Dean had finished an entire draft of the story that he had titled “Oblivion”. He was confident that he could finish his other assignments during the weekend. 

 

Someone knocked at the door around 7:00p.m., and Dean assumed that it was Cas. He walked over to the door, and opened it with a beaming smile.

 

“W-whoa, hello, Dean,”, Cas stammered and fiddled with the fringe of his mint-coloured jacket. His face flushed pink. “You look really nice.”, he said, nervously.

 

Castiel was dressed quite nicely, as well. Along with his mint jacket, his hair was fixed in place with gel (but not too much), he was wearing a tight white t-shirt, tucked into a pair of light blue jeans. 

 

“Thanks... Y-you too.”, Dean stumbled over his words. He grabbed his backpack, putting his laptop and phone inside, locked the door and walked outside with Cas. “Wait, where are we going? We’re taking the bus, yeah?”, he asked.

 

The other boy realized that he hadn’t really thought about this yet. “I’m not sure,”, Cas paused to think. “What do you like?”, he eventually asked.

 

“Um… Greek?”, Dean replied.

 

“Great, I know a good place called  _ Athena Restaurant _ . Want to go there?”, Cas asked as they continued to walk to the bus stop.

 

“Sounds awesome.”

 

Dean sat next to Cas on the bus and put his arm over his shoulder, which made Cas’ face flush red, and Dean giggled at that.

 

The pair arrived about two blocks away from the restaurant, and they walked the rest of the way there. They got a table near the window and ordered. 

 

“So, Cas, I was wondering if we could make the channel this Sunday, and we can record and edit a video the day before. Would that be okay?”, Dean proposed, taking a gulp of his lemonade.

 

“Yes, sure! ...What song, though?”

 

“In music class, we started playing  _ Carry On My Wayward Son _ , so I have chords for that. I found some chords for piano, too.”, Dean showed Cas the chords on his phone, then sent them to him by text. “Could we do that?”

 

“Definitely!”, Cas agreed. He thought for a moment. “Do you have a good quality camera and microphone? Maybe lights? We’d need those for it to look nice. We can edit it on your laptop, too.”.

 

“I’ve got a really nice video camera, but I don’t have mics or lights or anything. Wanna go and buy some later tonight?”, Dean suggested. He had forgotten that it’d be this complicated to create a channel.

 

Their food arrived then, and they thanked the server.

 

“You guys are a really cute couple, by the way.”, the server grinned. The pair’s eyes widened, they quickly glanced at one another and started blushed furiously, their faces turning tomato red.

 

“W-we’re not.. Um…”, Dean stammered, and Cas nodded.

 

“You sure about that?”, she laughed and walked away.

 

_ Am I sure? _ they both thought, fiddling with their food and avoiding each other’s lines of sight. Castiel eventually broke the silence.

 

“Yes, um, we can go get the equipment tonight. My shift at the shop isn’t until 6:45 in the morning.”, he replied.

 

“Great.”, Dean’s face still coloured a flaming shade of pink.

 

They finished their meals while discussing the channel. Cas showed the other boy his drafts for designs for the channel art. Dean lit up when he saw them and proceeded to shower the artist in compliments.

 

“It’s 8:00, if we want to get the equipment, we have to go now.”, Dean remarked, after checking his phone.

 

“Mm. Okay, let’s go.”, Cas replied. They paid the bill and went on their way to the nearest Best Buy. It was a couple of blocks away, so they decided to walk. As they passed a Sephora shop, Cas suddenly intertwined his fingers with Dean’s, and he felt heat rise in his face for the third time that evening.

 

Eventually, they settled on some lights and microphones, and they split the price. It was expensive, but Cas could use the lights for his Photography course, and Dean could use the microphones for the Video-recording course he was planning on taking the next year, so it would be alright, even if their videos didn’t get many views. It was all for fun, anyway.

“We can leave the stuff in my dorm.”, Cas volunteered, taking the bags from Dean.

 

“You’re sure that’s okay?”, Dean looked a bit concerned.

 

“It’s absolutely fine. I’m going to spend some time on my tablet sketching out the cover art tonight.”, Cas replied, grinning.

 

“Awesome…”, Dean exhaled.

 

They walked towards their dorms in silence.

 

Dean was now considering what the waitress had said earlier, about he and the other boy being in a relationship. Is that what he wanted, or were they just friends? No. No, they were friends. Just because they held hands didn’t mean that Dean  liked Cas. They were friends, holding hands like two girls would. He’d just have to… make sure that whatever he did didn’t seem like he wanted Cas. He wasn’t into guys. He was straight. Obviously. Though he had decided that, Dean couldn't erase the voice in the back of his head telling him how cute the other boy looked, and how much he wanted to grab his hand again.

 

They kept chatting all the way back to their dorms, but Dean was less affectionate. He didn’t really seem as open or comfortable with Castiel like he had before. Cas quickly noticed that, and he was very concerned. 

 

Eventually, they walked in silence. Cas was wondering why Dean was suddenly so introverted because usually, it was  him that was quiet. They were in front of the building where the dorms were.

 

“Dean, what’s wrong?”, Cas suddenly broke the silence. “Y-you can’t say that nothing is wrong because obviously, you’re not happy.”

 

“I…”, Dean started answering but didn’t continue. He couldn’t tell Castiel what was wrong because he’d think it was weird. It was evident that the taller boy wasn’t into guys, so even if Dean were, he wouldn’t have a shot with Cas. But he wasn’t. 

 

The other boy was fed up with Dean. Did he not understand that Castiel cared about him? Because… He did. Cas really did care about Dean.

 

“Dean. Stop.” Cas stepped in front of Dean and put his hands on his shoulders. “Please, talk to me.” Cas looked like he was going to cry, and Dean looked away. He wanted to cry. He couldn’t, not with Castiel here. “DEAN.” Cas scrunched his eyebrows together and was holding back tears.

 

“Cas… Please, just stop.”, Dean breathed shakily.

 

“No! No, I won’t stop! You need to tell me what’s wrong.”, the taller boy suddenly sounded much more serious. Dean tried to keep walking, he didn’t want to talk. Cas held him in place and refused to let him move. Dean sighed and ran his hand through his hair. 

 

“I’m just confused right now, okay? I’m sorry.”, Dean managed to choke out. He couldn’t share what was really on his mind, not here, while staring into Cas’ sparkling eyes. Sure, maybe he wanted to confide in the other boy, but it was hard. He honestly thought it was just a phase, and it’d be over soon. Sure, he’d never really liked any girls, but he hadn’t liked any boys, either. He’d dated one girl in grade 10, but that was just because people kept calling him gay, even though he wasn’t. He wanted to prove them wrong.  _I just haven't found the right person..._ , Dean thought.

 

“Dean… Iー”, Cas removed his hand from Dean’s shoulder and exhaled loudly.

 

“Don’t worry about me. I’m fine.”. They had just reached the dorms, and Dean walked up the stairs to the building. Cas stayed at the bottom.

 

“This… No. Okay, this isn’t about you. I need to think for a while.”, Dean was frustrated and really didn’t want to talk. “I’m sorry. Justー”, he sighed.

 

“D-do you not like me or something..?”, Castiel asked, and sighed, running his hand through his hair. “I’m… going to go. We can talk tomorrow or something. I’m really sorー”

 

Dean interrupted the other boy by wrapping his arms around him. Cas was surprised, and reluctantly put his hands on Dean’s lower back. Did Cas seriously think that Dean didn’t like him? 

 

“Thank you. Thank you, Cas.”, Dean mumbled into the taller boy’s shoulder and moved closer to him. At this point, Dean didn’t care if this looked “gay”. This was what he needed. Comfort. They stayed like that for a while, and Cas didn’t pull away, because he knew that Dean needed it. Eventually, Dean pulled away.

 

"You're the best thing to come into my life in a long time," Castiel commented, and both boys were glad that it was dark out, so the other couldn't see their faces turning bright pink.

That evening, Dean tried to sleep, but couldn’t stop smiling and thinking about Cas. He was gradually becoming more and more accepting of the fact that he liked the taller boy, and soon realized (after some research, he also ended up signing up for a Tumblr account) that he could be "bisexual". Just because liked a boy didn't mean that he had to be gay. Things were going better for Dean, while Cas was just becoming more of a mess. The dark-haired boy couldn’t stop overthinking everything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I edited this really quickly (Aathavan wasn't online to help), so if I made any mistakes please point them out.
> 
> The chapter title is a reference to "Doubt" by Twenty-One Pilots.
> 
>  
> 
> If anyone reading this was wondering, here are my social media accounts:
> 
> Instagram:  
> -@bisexual.geek  
> -@justanerdthatdraws
> 
> Tumblr:  
> -@innocentlilnerd
> 
> And if anyone wants to contact me (collab, or something), here's my e-mail:
> 
> chloedthegeek@gmail.com


	8. You Don't Have to Say "I Love You" to Say "I Love You"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Benny confronts Dean about who he's been texting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this one is short, I'm so sorry aaa

Dean woke up with a start Friday morning, his heart pounding because he realized that he’d have to talk to Castiel that day about what had happened the previous night. He was extremely nervous.

 

Dean was unable to focus on his work that day, only being able to think about how he would talk to Cas. When Visual Arts eventually came around, Dean’s heart was erupting in his chest from fear, but also from excitement. He looked around the class for his friend and walked over to his desk.

 

Dean put his hand on Cas's shoulder and sighed. “Cas. I’m sorry about last night. I was just frustrated.”

 

Castiel frowned, unsure of how to respond. “It’s fine.”

 

“Are we good now?”, Dean’s eyebrows furrowed, obviously concerned for the sake of their friendship.

 

“Of course, Dean. I wouldn’t let a friend like you go just because of a small argument or… whatever that was.”, Cas smiled gently, which made Dean grin in return.

 

The pair kept stealing glances at one another throughout the class, and when one caught the other, an explosion of blushing occurred. This also caught Mr. Carter’s attention, who was now 100% convinced that they were dating.

 

Dean headed to his dorm after Visual Arts course (his last course of the day) and texted Castiel.  _ “do u wanna record a cover tonight?” _ , he typed, and his finger hovered over the  **Send** button. Eventually, he pulled up the courage to hit send, but immediately shut his phone off and literally threw it across the room, unaware that his roommate, Benny, was already there. 

 

“Hey, man… Um, you doin’ okay?”, Benny asked, and rose his eyebrows with a smile.

 

“Yeah, um, yeah. I’m fine.”

 

Benny put on a smug grin. “Were you texting a giiiirl?”

 

This caused Dean to blush, even though Benny’s assumption was, in fact, incorrect.

 

Benny glanced to the corner of the room started laughing hysterically. “Oh, man, you threw your phone? What did you write?!”

 

Dean didn’t answer, so Benny went over to Dean’s phone and opened up his texts (Benny had known Dean’s password since they became friends in high school. It was legitimately  _ 6666 _ ). Dean tried to get his phone back, but Benny was too tall and when he was holding his phone above his head, Dean couldn’t reach it. Benny took a second to read the texts and started laughing so hard that he cried.

 

“Oh, my gooooddd. You’re pining for them!”, Benny commented, howling in laughter.

 

“A who-what? Pining?”, Dean responded, confused.

 

“Like you like them a heck of a lot. But you haven’t told them?”

 

“Um… No.”, Dean mumbled.

 

Benny sat cross-legged on his bed and gestured for Dean to come sit with him.

 

‘So, wait...  Is it a girl?”, Benny asked, his voice suddenly turning serious.

 

“Um…”, Dean paused. “No.”

 

Benny’s eyes widened. “You’re not straight? I could’ve sworn.”

 

“You don’t care…, though?”, Dean said quietly.

 

“No, no, Dean. It’s fine.”, Benny replied, which made Dean sigh in relief. He was ecstatic to have that weight off his chest.

 

“Okay, so this  _ guy _ , is he cute?”, Benny asked.

 

Dean blushed, thinking about Castiel. “Mmm… yeah. Y’know Cas? The guy who walks around campus in a trenchcoat like three times a week?”

 

“Oh! That guy, yeah. Man, he is cute. Good choice”, Benny formed an O.K. sign with his hand. “No homo, though.”

 

Dean grinned, and they continued their discussion while Dean raved about Castiel for an hour.

 

Suddenly, Dean got a notification from Cas and he screamed quietly. Benny grabbed the phone, determined to be Dean’s wingman.

 

“Noooo!! Benny, gimme back my phone, man!”, Dean whined.

 

“Nah, I’m good.”

 

“Not cool dude, not cool!!”, Dean frowned, “What did he say..?”

 

“Aaawwww!!!”, Benny exclaimed, reading the text.

 

“Benny!!! Honestly!”

 

Benny cleared his throat, made his voice low like Cas’ and read the text overdramatically. “Yes, Dean, I’d love to do that with you. Come over at 6?”

 

Dean blushed and held out his hand. “Gimme my phone. Let me respond.”

 

Benny continued to type a response while Dean yelled at him to return his phone. He hit send and handed Dean’s phone back. Dean read what Benny had sent and nearly punched him. Benny howled with laughter and nearly started crying.

 

_ Of course, Cas, I’d enjoy that a lot. _

 

“BENNY. YOU. SUCK.”, Dean cried, and shoved Benny, obviously annoyed, but his eyes suddenly widened and he nearly dropped his phone. “Oh, my god, oh, my god, oh, my god, oh, my god, he’s typing a response.”

 

_ I’ll see you then. I’m looking forward to it. :) _ , Cas had written. Benny screamed excitedly and almost fainted.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The chapter title is from the song "For Him", by Troye Sivan. 
> 
>  
> 
> (Aathavan didn't help me edit this chapter smh that lil prick... jk he's nice)


	9. Only Fools Fall For You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean's discussion with Benny about Castiel continues. Benny is 10/10 a fangirl and ships it.

“Oh, _hon_ . No. You can’t wear _that_ .”, Benny whined, rolling his eyes. He was trying to help Dean find something to wear for when he was going to record a video with Cas. Dean was getting annoyed, he had to leave in ten minutes anyway. It was just a video, it wasn’t like they were going on a _date_ or anything. “M’kay… What about…”, Benny paused to fish through their shared closet. “This!”, Benny exclaimed, pulling out a white button-up shirt and some pastel purple jeans.

 

“Ummm…. Those aren’t mine.”, Dean replied, furrowing his eyebrows. Dean had never even seen Benny wear that outfit. Where had it even come from? (Truth is, Benny had quickly gone shopping when he said that he was going to “get some chips” from the corner store.)

 

“Yeah, whatever. It’s cute. Wear it for your _boooyyyfriend_.”, Benny teased.

 

Dean sighed and blushed a light shade of pink. “Fine. But Cas isn’t my… mmm… b-boyfriend.”, Dean almost had to choke out that last word.

 

“Mhm, okay then Mr. ‘Straight AF’.”

 

He rolled his eyes at Benny, grabbed the clothes and quickly changed.

 

“I’ve gotta admit that you two are hella cute together, though.”, Benny said, putting on a smug grin.

 

“I guess… But I’m like 90% sure that he doesn’t feel the same way, anyways.”, Dean admitted.

 

“Aha!! So you _do_ like him!”, Benny exclaimed, jumping off the bed. He screamed. “Oh my _god_ , I ship it!”

 

Dean groaned.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Dean’s heart was pounding as he walked out the door toward Cas’ dorm, carrying the supplies they had previously bought and his electric guitar.

 

Dean reached dorm #284 and was about to knock on the door when he suddenly hesitated. He sighed and lifted his hand back up in a position to knock, but the door suddenly opened. Dean was startled and jumped backward a bit.

 

“OH. H-hi.”, Dean stammered, and his cheeks flushed pink. He cursed under his breath. What was happening to him..? He was never like this around Benny or his other friends. It wasn’t even this bad around girls!

 

“I thought I heard you approaching. Want to start? Alex helped me set up the lights and stuff.”, Cas said. Dean wondered how Castiel was so calm when he was a blushing mess.

 

Dean handed Castiel piano sheet music for “Carry On My Wayward Son”. He unpacked his electric guitar and strummed a few chords to make sure that it was tuned properly. Castiel started practicing on his piano but kept getting distracted by Dean’s pants. Damn. They were _really_ nice and complimented his body shape (a heck of a lot). Okay, so maybe Cas _seemed_ to be cool and collected, but he was a hell of a mess inside.

 

“Alright! Wanna try a run through before we record it?”, Dean asked.

  
“Sure, let’s go!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (excuse the fact that it's short, I just wanted to spotlight Benny's scene)

**Author's Note:**

> creds to my friend Aathavan U. for helping me edit, he's pretty awesome by the way
> 
> oh and my sister for the title hah
> 
>  
> 
> if ya want to contact me, please do! i'd love to get to know y'all! ;)
> 
> here:
> 
> ig: @pureinnocentchild + @sockaliens + @sockalienss + @coransmustachewax
> 
> tumblr: innocentlilnerd
> 
> e-mail: chloedthegeek@gmail.com


End file.
